Foxconn in talks to introduce its battery swapping division in India
According to news reports, Foxconn is waiting for regulatory clarity as the government’s word on the dimensions for the battery packs would determine whether it can continue its partnership with Gogoro in India.
Taiwanese contract manufacturer is holding a dialogue with the Centre on introducing its electric battery swapping infrastructure in India, according to an ET Prime report.
Foxconn executives had a meeting with government officials about two weeks ago, in which they expressed their interest in executing the market entry either with Taiwanese battery refueling platform Gogoro or individually, officials aware of the talks told according to the news report.
“The discussions were with the battery swapping division of Foxconn, which includes manufacturing of swapping stations, power electronics, battery packs, and so on,” one of them told ET. “Generally, their first preference is to do it through their partnership with Gogoro, which is what they have done in Taiwan, Indonesia, China, and some other markets as well. That is the plan for India too.”
Officials said Foxconn was waiting for regulatory clarity as the government’s word on the dimensions for the battery packs would determine whether it can continue its partnership with Gogoro in India.
“They have been engaging to understand more on what is happening on the policy front (and) what is happening with respect to battery standards, more specifically battery dimensions, because the Indian government is looking to standardise the battery dimensions, which might or might not be the one that Gogoro uses,” said the person quoted above.
Niti Aayog had put out a draft battery swapping policy in April this year, but the final battery swapping policy has not been released yet. The policy reportedly has a clause in the interoperability across EV brands, standard battery pack specifications, business models for service providers, and incentives for companies setting up the infrastructure.
Officials aware of Foxconn’s dialogue with the government said the company would enter India’s battery swapping infrastructure even if the government-mandated dimensions do not match with Gogoro’s infrastructure executed elsewhere.
Edited by Affirunisa Kankudti